Potential Sex Differences Relative to Autism Spectrum Disorder and Metals

Details

• Personal Author:
  Christian MA ; Dickerson AS ; Nguyen VT ; Rotem RS ; Specht AJ
• Description:
  Purpose of review: This study aims to summarize the current body of literature on the relationship between various toxic metals exposures (i.e., aluminum, antimony, arsenic, beryllium, cadmium, chromium, lead, manganese, and nickel) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), with a focus on potential sex differences in these associations. Recent findings: Sex differences in ASD diagnosis and mutagenic effects of toxic exposures indicate that sex differences may play a major part in the causal relationship of any potential associations seen; however, we were only able to find three studies that reported on sex differences in observed associations with toxic metals exposure and ASD. We also found several studies investigating associations between ASD and metals exposures, including 11 on aluminum, 6 on antimony, 15 on arsenic, 5 on beryllium, 17 on cadmium, 11 on chromium, 25 on lead, 14 on manganese, and 13 on nickel with markers of exposure in hair, urine, blood, teeth, fingernails, and air pollution. Results for each metal were conflicting, but studies on cadmium and lead yielded the highest proportion of studies with positive results (72% and 36%, respectively). Summary: Based on our examination of existing literature, the current evidence warrants a considerable need for evaluations of sex differences in future studies assessing the association between metals exposures and ASD. Additionally, failure to account for potential sex differences could result in bias and misinterpretation of exposure-disease relationships. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Aluminum Compounds Antimony Arsenic Biomarkers Cadmium Chromium Energy Metabolism Environment Environmental Exposure Hazardous Substances Inorganic Chemicals Lead Manganese Metals Nickel Occupational Health Safety Sex Characteristics

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• Keywords:
  Aluminum ASDs Author Keywords: Metals Autism Autism Spectrum Disorders Beryllium Environmental Exposure Environmental Exposures Environmental Factors Humans Markers Of Exposure Metabolism Sex Differences Sex Factors Systematic Reviews Toxic Materials

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• ISSN:
  2196-5412
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; OSHA Region 1 ; OSHA Region 6 ; Texas
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  405-414
• Volume:
  4
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20052820
• Citation:
  Curr Environ Health Rep 2017 Dec; 4(4):405-414
• Contact Point Address:
  Aisha S. Dickerson, Department of Epidemiology and Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, USA
• Email:
  adickerson@hsph.harvard.edu
• CAS Registry Number:
  Aluminum (CAS RN 7429-90-5) ; Antimony (CAS RN 7440-36-0) ; Arsenic (CAS RN 7440-38-2) ; Beryllium (CAS RN 7440-41-7) ; Cadmium (CAS RN 7440-43-9) ; Chromium (CAS RN 7440-47-3) ; Lead (CAS RN 7439-92-1) ; Manganese (CAS RN 7439-96-5) ; Nickel (CAS RN 7440-02-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2018
• Performing Organization:
  Harvard School of Public Health
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Current Environmental Health Reports
• End Date:
  20280630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d83ff15606dac2772ad63e5a98cec01bf29c7f6e732546770beaed1975ca6448e9d681bec858717b88dc6df872731b7e192c97d4f1bec79a6fa6646fd526008c
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/212288/cdc_212288_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 624.98 KB ]